Korea Investment CORP Buys 7,600 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Korea Investment CORP grew its holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 39.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,918 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 7,600 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP's holdings in Waters were worth $9,986,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in Waters during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waters by 235.7% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Waters by 129.3% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in Waters during the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Waters by 54.3% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Baird R W raised Waters from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Waters from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $430.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Waters from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Waters from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $460.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $401.31.

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Waters Trading Down 5.0 %

WAT stock traded down $17.97 on Thursday, reaching $344.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,014,485 shares, compared to its average volume of 459,213. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.94. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $384.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $373.38. The firm has a market cap of $20.48 billion, a PE ratio of 32.18, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. Waters Co. has a 12-month low of $279.24 and a 12-month high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

About Waters

Waters Corporation provides analytical workflow solutions in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. It operates through two segments: Waters and TA. The company designs, manufactures, sells, and services high and ultra-performance liquid chromatography, as well as mass spectrometry (MS) technology systems and support products, including chromatography columns, other consumable products, and post-warranty service plans.